The conference was as deep as ever. How else do you explain Utah beating Stanford, Arizona embarrassing Oregon a week after losing to Washington State, and Washington State beating USC? But as we came to find out, conference depth can be a blessing and a curse.

What good is a grueling league schedule if it means only minimal BCS dollars for the conference's members to share?

I'm not saying the Pac-12 was treated unfairly in the bowl-selection process. Oregon and UCLA controlled their own destinies toward a BCS bowl berth entering the final two games of the season -- and blew it.

The Bruins were 8-2 and ranked No. 14 when they played one half of football and lost 38-33 to Arizona State on Nov. 23. That same day, then-No.

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5 Oregon was in the driver's seat to play in the Pac-12 Championship Game at 9-1. But the Ducks laid an egg in the desert with a 42-16 loss to Arizona.

So no at-large BCS bowl berth for the Pac-12. Them's the breaks.

In the end, it was a good season that could and probably should have been a lot better.

As for the teams, here are my final grades in alphabetical order:

(Note: Grades are based on how teams faired in relation to my preseason expectations.)

ARIZONA (8-5 overall, 4-5 conference, 4th in South): Arizona's offense at times was vintage Rich Rod - fast, deceptive, unstoppable. But the Wildcats were largely overmatched against quality opposition, save for the Ducks, and mostly inconsistent. Ka'Deem Carey should have been in New York for the Heisman Trophy Presentation. In my opinion, his suspension from the opening game against Northern Arizona cost him the chance. The Wildcats failed to improve on their 2012 record and lost to Arizona State for the second straight year. But they did win eight games, and convincing victories over Oregon and Boston College in the AdvoCare V100 Bowl suggest they are heading in a positive direction under Rich Rodriguez.

Grade: C+

ARIZONA STATE (10-4, 8-1, 1st in South): By winning 10 games and taking home the South Division title, the Sun Devils reached their potential in my mind, though losses to Notre Dame and Texas Tech in the Holiday Bowl were cause for head-scratching. This team was very good but not great, and, despite wins over four schools ranked in the final AP Top 25 and a No. 21 final ranking, certainly not elite. There were however some elite talents in Tempe this season (see: Will Sutton, Taylor Kelly, Marion Grice, D.J. Foster). So much that I foresee the 2013 Arizona State Sun Devils being one of those unique teams you look back on years from now and wonder, "How did they win only 10 games?"

Grade: B+

CALIFORNIA (1-11, 0-9, 6th in North): The term "dumpster fire" comes to mind. Sonny Dykes endured about as bad of a first year as any coach will have. The Golden Bears ranked 10th in the conference in yards and allowed an average of 45.9 points per game. Their lone win came against FCS Sacramento State -- and the Bears needed a late rally. Injuries wrecked havoc on them. The lone bright spot was freshman quarterback Jared Goff, who threw for 3,508 yards and 18 touchdowns. It looks like the start of a great career for him.

Grade: D+

COLORADO (4-8, 1-8, 6th in South): It wasn't a bad first year for Mike McIntyre and the Buffs. Colorado found a potential long-term quarterback in freshman Sefo Liufau, who showed flashes as a dual threat, and enjoyed a record-breaking season by wide receiver Paul Richardson, the 12th-leading receiver in the country. The Buffs' inability to compete for four quarters, especially against Pac-12 opponents, was a serious issue, as was their run game (108th-fewest yards), defense (115th-most points allowed) and depth. This next offseason of recruiting will be pivotal.

Grade: C

OREGON (11-2, 7-2, 2nd in North): The ugly loss to Arizona in late November changed everything about Oregon's season. In one terrible afternoon in Tucson, the Ducks lost all hope for playing in a BCS bowl, be it the national championship game or Rose Bowl, and their season instantly became a disappointment. Oregon didn't miss a beat without Chip Kelly in terms of production. Led by quarterback Marcus Mariota, the Ducks ranked second in the nation in yards and were fourth in scoring. They beat Washington for the 10th straight season, beat up Texas in the Alamo Bowl and finished ninth in the final AP poll. Still, their goal was No. 1. And their loss to Stanford spoke volumes.

Grade: B-

OREGON ST. (7-6, 4-5, 4th in North): Sean Mannion and Brandin Cooks were the top quarterback-receiver duo in the nation. Mannion totaled the second-most passing yards (4,662) in the country, while Cooks led the nation with 1,730 receiving yards as the 2013 Biletnikoff Award winner. Oregon State certainly looked headed for a near-.500 finish after dropping their opener, 49-46, to FCS Eastern Washington. The Beavers responded by winning six straight, but their defense was too poor to sustain that momentum down the stretch even with Mannion and Cooks. And they lost their final five regular-season games. A 38-23 Hawaii Bowl victory over Boise State made for a nice garnish.

Grade: C

STANFORD (11-3, 7-3, 1st in North): As two-time defending champ, the Cardinal remains the team to beat in the conference, though that Rose Bowl loss to Michigan State had to leave a bad taste in Stanford's mouth. Aside from that, the Cardinal had about as good of a season as anyone could have expected - a conference title and BCS bowl berth, four first-, second- or third-team All-Americas, six all-Pac-12 selections. With big names such as David Yankey, Trent Murphy, Shayne Skov, Kevin Hogan, Tyler Gaffney and Ty Montgomery, this team certainly should have beaten Utah and USC, though I didn't expect the Cardinal to finish the regular season undefeated. As for the Rose Bowl, to me, it was a toss-up.

Grade: A-

UCLA (10-3, 6-3, 2nd in South): If you told me in August that UCLA's only regular-season losses would be to Stanford, Oregon and Arizona State, I would have said that's a best-case scenario for the Bruins. UCLA had a very good season. A win over Arizona State would have made it great. That would have put the Bruins into the Pac-12 Championship Game and put them in the BCS at-large conversation. But as they showed in that loss to the Sun Devils, the Bruins struggled to put together four good quarters of football this season. Chock it up to their youth on defense and inexperience along the offensive line. Brett Hundley had a monster season, passing for 3,071 yards and 24 touchdowns, and rushing for a team-high 748 yards and 11 scores. Lott IMPACT winner Anthony Barr reaffirmed himself as a likely first-round draft pick, and his linebacker-mate Myles Jack, who dazzled on both sides of the ball, looks ready to take his place.

Grade: A-

USC (10-4, 6-3, 3rd in South): (Deep breath) Wow. The Trojans went through three coaches and were all over the spectrum on the field. It was easy to give up on them after their 3-2 start and subsequent firing of Lane Kiffin. But interim coach Ed Orgeron steered USC back to respectability with wins in six of its final eight games, including a 20-17 upset of then-No. 4 Stanford, to end the regular season. Southern Cal followed that with a 45-20 beatdown of No. 20 Fresno State in the Las Vegas under Clay Helton, who replaced Orgeron after USC hired former Washington coach Steve Sarkisian as its longtime head coach and Orgeron hastily left the program. Overshadowed by all the drama was the spectacular play of USC's defense (16th in the nation in points allowed) and sophomore quarterback Cody Kessler, who threw for 2,968 yards and 20 touchdowns. 2012 Biletnikoff winner Marqise Lee had a mediocre final season, as he was hampered by injuries.

Grade: B+

UTAH (5-7, 2-7, 5th in South): The Utes had a disappointing season, but boy was it exciting. Seven of their games were decided by seven points or less, including a 27-21 upset of then-unbeaten Stanford, wins over in-state rivals Utah State, 30-26, and BYU, 20-13, a 51-48 overtime loss to Oregon State, a 20-19 defeat to then-No. 22 Arizona State, and a season-ending 24-17 win over Colorado. Junior wideout Dres Anderson had a 1,000-yard receiving season, and sophomore quarterback Travis Wilson put up decent numbers (1,827 passing yards, 386 rushing, 18 total touchdowns), which, unfortunately for him, included interceptions (16), before suffering a possible career-ending concussion in November. Utah's defense on the other hand was abysmal.

Grade: C

WASHINGTON (9-4, 5-4, 3rd in North): Can't say the Huskies didn't make progress in 2013. They won nine games as opposed to the eight they had in each of the previous three years. But was this really a successful season? Washington opened with a massive 38-6 beatdown of then-No. 19 Boise State and won its next three games before losing 31-28 to Stanford in one of the year's most exciting games. Then the Huskies reverted back to their old ways -- back-to-back ugly losses to Oregon and Arizona State and a 41-31 flameout at UCLA. Washington did avenge last year's loss to Washington State, and its Sarkisian-less 31-16 win over BYU in the Fight Hunger Bowl made for a nice finish. Quarterback Keith Price ended his college career strong with 2,966 passing yards and 21 touchdowns, as did running back Bishop Sankey (1,870 rushing yards, 20 touchdowns), who announced he is forgoing his senior year to enter the NFL draft. Defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox, now with Sarkisian at USC, upgraded the Huskies D to stout.

Grade: C+

WASHINGTON ST. (6-7, 4-5, 4th in North): Even with a disastrous finish in the New Mexico Bowl, Year 2 was a great success for the Cougars under Mike Leach. Led by quarterback Connor Halliday, Washington State rode nation's fourth-best passing offense (368 yards per game) to its first bow berth in 10 years. The Cougars upset then-No. 25 USC at the Coliseum and nearly took down eventual-SEC champion Auburn on The Plains in Week 1. A win in the New Mexico Bowl would have made this an A-worthy season, but the fact the Cougars squandered a 22-point lead, gave up 17 points in the final three minutes and lost, 48-45, to a Mountain West team in Colorado State was too hideous to overlook.

Grade: B+

Very-early 2014 conference rankings

1. STANFORD: Losses to the NFL draft will be tough, but the Cardinal just seem to reload on offense and defense. Plus, Hogan is back.

2. OREGON: With Marcus Mariota back at quarterback and Ifo Ekpre-Olomu roaming in the secondary, the Ducks are poised for another 11-win season or better.

3. UCLA: That UCLA was able to keep Brett Hundley and coach Jim Mora for another season is huge. If their front seven doesn't drop off too much, the Bruins will again challenge for the South title if not the conference crown.

4. ARIZONA ST.: Taylor Kelly and D.J. Foster will keep the Sun Devils offense humming. Their defense has to step up though if they plan to take the next step and make a BCS bowl in 2014.

5. WASHINGTON: Led by linebacker Shaq Thompson, the Huskies are set defensively for their first season under Chris Petersen. Their offense is another story. Gone are quarterback Keith Price, running back Bishop Sankey and tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins.

6. USC: Steve Sarkisian should bring stability to the program and further the develop of quarterback Cody Kessler. Even without Marqise Lee, the Trojans' receiving corps is stacked, and their defense is returning plenty of talent.

7. OREGON ST.: Quarterback Sean Mannion and running back Storm Woods are an excellent 1-2 punch. The Beavers defense meanwhile is full of question marks.

8. WASHINGTON ST.: Connor Halliday should led the Cougars back to the postseason.

9. ARIZONA: The Wildcats will be breaking in a new quarterback for the fourth straight season and will sorely miss Ka'Deem Carey.

10. COLORADO: San Jose State began turning the corner in Year 2 under Mike MacIntyre. I've got a feeling the Buffaloes will do the same.

11. UTAH: As tough as the Utes are at home, they'll be starting from scratch at many key areas. The talent they're returning isn't that great either.

12. CALIFORNIA: It's another year, do you'd like to think the Golden Bears will improve in 2014. But aside from quarterback Jared Goff, they have little to build on.

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